Department for Transport

Channel Ferries

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with his French counterpart on handling traffic from roll-on, roll-off ferry services originating from Dover and arriving at the Port of Calais in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The current Secretary of State is yet to engage in discussions with his French counterpart but will be shortly, however the Government’s Border Delivery Group has liaised with French authorities at various levels.

Ports: Wales

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with his Welsh counterpart on ensuring all UK ports are prepared for the UK leaving the EU.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Government is engaging closely with the Wales Office and Welsh Government as part of the programme to ensure that all UK ports are prepared for the UK leaving the EU, including the possibility of a no-deal exit.

Bus Services: Railways

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to improve the integration and cooperation of bus and train services.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Decisions on how best to co-ordinate bus and rail services are best tackled locally. The needs of all public transport users must be taken into account when considering how to manage the different public transport networks. Changes at one station or location may benefit passengers there but may be a disadvantage to passengers further along the route. The Department is currently in the process of building the Bus Open Data Digital Service which will serve as a platform for bus operators to provide their route, timetable, location, and fares data. This data can then be used by application developers to build products and services to help passengers plan their journeys, including onward journeys from railway stations. The Williams Rail Review is looking at how strategic planning can be improved, including at the local level, so train services and stations can be integrated with local bus services and cycling routes.

Public Transport

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to incentivise people to use public transport since 2010.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Bus Services Act 2017 provides the tools local authorities need such as Enhanced Partnerships and Franchising to improve local bus services and increase passenger numbers. Our forthcoming Bus Open Data Digital Service will transform the experience for passengers by making it easier for them to work out the best options available. The Government has committed to provide £150 million of funding to support the delivery of smart and integrated ticketing across local transport and rail services in the north. Transport for the North, working closely with my Department, is in the final stages of procuring a digital platform that would make data on fares available online.The Government has introduced a requirement for new franchises to introduce ‘one-click’ automated Delay Repay compensation, to make it easier for passengers to claim compensation when they have suffered delays. The Government has also rolled out smart ticketing on rail - smart tickets are now accepted at rail stations across almost all of the network, with all franchised operators offering smart cards and/or barcode ticketing.We now want to ensure that across regional and urban commuter areas, smart ticketing can deliver the kind of pay-as-you-go structure that is used in London and make journeys easier.

Garages and Petrol Stations

Stephen Pound: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent garages from parking vehicles on streets that do not a display registration plate or a visible vehicle identification numbers; and if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the powers available to the (a) DVLA, (b) the Metropolitan police and (c) local authorities in tackling that problem.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Legislation relating to the display of registration numbers and number plates already exists and enforcement is an operational matter for the police. Successful prosecution depends on the police sighting the vehicle on the public highway and establishing that an offence has been committed. Number plate offences are also included in the Home Office’s fixed penalty system. This provides the police with a practical and effective means of enforcement. The police can also remove any vehicle that is causing an obstruction, is likely to cause danger or is broken down or abandoned without lawful authority. Local authorities have legislative powers to fine garages for leaving two or more vehicles advertised for sale on the road. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is responsible for enforcement against unlicensed vehicles and has legislative powers to clamp or remove such vehicles from public roads.

Petrol: Ethanol

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of increasing the amount of ethanol in petrol sold to reduce carbon emissions.

George Freeman: In 2018 the Department published a call for evidence on “E10 petrol, consumer protection and fuel pump labelling”. This document noted that using E10 (petrol containing up to 10% bioethanol) in place of E5 could reduce the net greenhouse gas emissions of a petrol vehicle by around two per cent.

Road Works: Small Businesses

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the amount of revenue lost by shops and small businesses because of roadworks or road closures annually.

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals on compensation for businesses for revenue lost as a result of roadworks or road closures.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Department has made no estimate of the amount of revenue lost by shops and small businesses as a result of road works or road closures and there are no plans to introduce legislation to compensate for such losses. It should be recognised that works need to take place from time to time and many businesses will benefit from the resulting improvements. Authorities and utility companies should ensure that works are undertaken as quickly and efficiently as possible in order to keep disruption to a minimum.

Electric Vehicles: North Cornwall

Scott Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to increase the number of electric car charging points in North Cornwall.

George Freeman: We want to encourage private sector investment to build and operate a self-sustaining public network that is affordable, reliable and accessible. In many cases, the market is best placed to identify the right locations for chargepoints and make improvements to the network and it is essential that viable commercial models are in place. The Government is also providing support through a number of schemes, which can be accessed across the country, including in North Cornwall. This includes schemes to help fund chargepoint infrastructure at people’s homes and workplaces and on residential streets. The Government’s on-street residential charging scheme offers grants to local authorities to help support this investment at local level. In February 2019, Cornwall County Council were awarded £94,000 through the Government’s Ultra Low Emission Taxi Infrastructure competition, to deliver five chargepoints dedicated to charging electric taxis and private hire vehicles. In conjunction with the Energy Savings Trust, this year the Office for Low Emission Vehicles has been running a series of roadshows for local authorities and public bodies across the UK, on best practice approaches to driving the uptake of ultra-low emission vehicles. The event in Bristol was well attended including local authority and public sector representatives from across the south west.

Roads: Safety

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the 11 July 2019 Road Safety Foundation report that (a) local road safety in the UK has major structural weaknesses and (b) the lack of funding may compromise the ability of councils to fulfil their legal duties.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: We are grateful for the work done by the Road Safety Foundation and we will consider its findings and take action as needed. On 13 June 2018, we published details of funding to improve 50 of England’s most dangerous A roads; many of these projects are now underway. On 19 July this year, as part of the Road Safety Statement, we announced a Rural Roads Working Group to consider road safety issues specific to rural roads. The Department will continue to work closely with the Safer Roads Foundation to identify further opportunities to improve road safety.

East Midlands Trains: Rolling Stock

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the franchise for East Midlands Trains stipulates that the new rolling stock for that route should be manufactured by a company that is based in the UK.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The East Midlands franchise does not stipulate where any new rolling stock should be manufactured. This will be a commercial matter for the operator and the manufacturer.

Ports: Wales

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what level of funding his Department has allocated to contingency planning at the ports (a) Holyhead and (b) Pembroke Dock in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Contingency planning in relation to access to these Ports is a matter for the Welsh Government. However, the Department for Transport has provided analytical support, and along with Border Delivery Group and others, has liaised closely with the Welsh Government and the Wales Office on preparations.

South Wales Railway Line

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to publish its study on improvements to rail capacity and speeds on the South Wales Mainline.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Holding answer received on 24 July 2019



Studies considering improvements to rail capacity and speeds on the South Wales Mainline are in an early stage of development. The Department does not routinely publish early drafts of such studies. Currently officials are actively engaged in working with local stakeholders to develop the proposals further and make a case for funding through the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline.

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department plans to ensure that all airlines operating in the UK have a carbon offset scheme to which customers can sign up.

George Freeman: Holding answer received on 24 July 2019



On 18 July 2019 the government launched a call for evidence on carbon offsetting for all transport modes, including aviation. This call for evidence explores how we might improve consumer understanding of the emissions from their journeys and their options to offset them, and if travel providers should be required to offer voluntary carbon offsets to their customers.This is an area where we believe more information is needed to understand how any schemes could work successfully and we are looking forward to seeing the views and evidence that come through in response.

Department for Transport: Post Office

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 10 June 2019 to Question 260045 on Department for Transport: Post Office, what the cost to the public purse was for this contract in each of the last five years.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Holding answer received on 25 July 2019



The information is considered to be commercial in confidence. To disclose information about fees, financial costs and any payments made would be likely to affect the commercial interests of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and the Post Office Ltd.

Shared Spaces

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with (a) the Royal National Institute of Blind People and (b) other NGOs on shared space schemes since his Department's announcement in July 2018 of a halt in the development of those schemes.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Holding answer received on 25 July 2019



Ministers meet regularly with groups representing disabled people, including those representing blind and partially sighted people, to discuss a wide range of inclusive and accessible transport issues. Officials in my Department also work closely with a wide range of stakeholders on many issues including shared space schemes, the opportunities they offer and the challenges they pose.

Railways: Standards

Neil O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which were the 100 scheduled rail journeys which were most frequently (a) cancelled or (b) significantly late over the last six month period for which data are available; and what proportion of each were (i) cancelled or (ii) significantly late.

Chris Heaton-Harris: We recognise performance on the railway has been unsatisfactory, and passengers have not always received the level of service they expected. While performance has improved recently, the new Transport Secretary understands passengers need the certainty of reliable journeys, and is determined to work with industry to improve performance. We are unable to provide the data requested, as it is owned by Network Rail. We advise you contact them directly for further information or refer to their websites.

Railways: Market Harborough

Neil O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of trains were (a) cancelled or significantly late and (b) on time in each year since 1996 from Market Harborough to London Terminals.

Chris Heaton-Harris: We recognise performance on the railway has been unsatisfactory, and passengers have not always received the level of service they expected. While performance has improved recently, the new Transport Secretary understands passengers need the certainty of reliable journeys, and is determined to work with industry to improve performance. We are unable to provide the data requested, as it is owned by Network Rail. We advise you contact them directly for further information or refer to their websites.

Transport

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 July 2019 to Question 276184, if he will estimate the (a) number of staff and (b) departmental resources which have been allocated to (i) maritime, (ii) road transport and (iii) aviation aspects of the UK leaving the EU since April 2019 to 22 July 2019.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Holding answer received on 25 July 2019



The number of people currently working on EU Exit within the Department can change as staff can move in accordance with priorities. It is not possible to provide a breakdown of staff numbers and departmental resources for modal areas given the cross cutting nature of some roles related to EU Exit.

Business: Aviation

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment the Government has made of whether businesses will be able to use air travel for the delivery of goods and services immediately after the UK's departure from the EU in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Holding answer received on 25 July 2019



The contingency measures adopted by the EU, including the implementing regulation amendment recognising the UK’s security regime and the reciprocal measures announced by the UK, mean that flights and the movement of cargo and passengers will be able to continue, even in a no deal scenario. Indeed, both the UK and the EU are committed to maintaining connectivity.

Unmanned Air Vehicles: Registration

Lee Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of using British Model Flying Association drone registration data to avoid duplicate registrations in the UK Drone Registration Scheme.

Lee Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to publicise the UK Drone Registration Scheme to (a) new and (b) drone owners.

Paul Maynard: Small unmanned aircraft (SUAs) can be enormously beneficial, both commercially and as a leisure pursuit. However, SUAs also have the potential to pose a safety and security threat so it is important that those operating them understand the law and their responsibilities as a remote pilot of an aircraft in UK airspace. The changes to the Air Navigation Order laid before Parliament in May 2018 require that all operators of SUAs of all types weighing 250g – 20kg must register their aircraft by 30 November 2019. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is working with the British Model Flying Association to see whether, as a service to their members, they may want to assist in the initial upload of data. The CAA will be launching an awareness-raising campaign to ensure that new and existing operators and remote pilots of small unmanned aircraft (SUAs) are aware of the requirement to register and take a competency test by 30 November 2019.

Department of Health and Social Care

Asthma: Death

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of deaths caused by asthma in (a) adults and (b) children exposed to high levels of air pollution during April 2019; and what comparative assessment he has made of the number of those deaths and the average number of deaths for asthma among those groups in April in each of the last 10 years.

Jo Churchill: I refer the hon. Member for Tooting to the answer I gave on 17 May 2019 to Question 252069.

Anaemia: Northern Ireland

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many patients in Northern Ireland were (a) diagnosed and (b) treated for iron deficiency anaemia in each of the last three years.

Jo Churchill: This data is not held. Healthcare is a devolved matter and data on diagnosis and treatment of specific conditions are a matter for the devolved administrations of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland respectively.

General Practitioners

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how local areas will be held accountable for progress made on the five year deal to expand GP services.

Jo Churchill: As delegated commissioners of primary care services, clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) will ensure general practitioner (GP) practices and their Primary Care Network (by extension through the Network Contract Directed Enhanced Service (DES)) are delivering their contractual requirements. As such, CCGs are responsible for assuring that services outlined in the GP contract (including the Network Contract DES) are delivered and that any claims for funding are validated.CCGs are supported in this by NHS England and NHS Improvement regional teams.

Obesity: Children

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Childhood Obesity Plan, Chapter two, what steps he is taking to ensure the halving of childhood obesity by 2030.

Jo Churchill: As part of delivering measures outlined in chapter two of the childhood obesity plan, we have held consultations on ending the sale of energy drinks to children, calorie labelling in the out-of-home sector, restricting promotions of fatty and sugary products by location and by price, and introducing further advertising restrictions on TV and online for products high is fat, salt and sugar. The consultation on Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services runs until 13 August. We have received a high level of responses to the consultations and it is important we take the time to consider them carefully before we set out further action. Chapter 3 of the childhood obesity plan, published on 22 July 2019 as part of ‘Advancing our health: prevention in the 2020s’, sets out further measures to help meet our ambition including confirmation of our intention to end the sale of energy drinks to children under the age of 16, and our plans for infant feeding, clear nutrition labelling, food reformulation to improve the nutritional content of foods, and support for individuals to achieve and maintain a healthier weight. In addition, the Chief Medical Officer is reviewing what more can be done to help us meet our ambition of halving childhood obesity by 2030. The review, due to report in September, will consider the approaches taken internationally, regionally and across the country, and will make a series of recommendations. ‘Advancing our health: prevention in the 2020s’ is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/advancing-our-health-prevention-in-the-2020s

Life Expectancy

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the proposed Green Paper on Prevention, what assessment of he has made of his Department's ability to improve healthy life expectancy by at least five extra years by 2035.

Jo Churchill: The Prevention Green Paper ‘Advancing our Health: prevention in the 2020s’, was published on 22 July 2019. The proposals it sets out will make a valuable contribution to the nation’s health. The Green Paper acknowledges further action will be needed in future to support the Ageing Grand Challenge ambition on healthy life expectancy.

Malnutrition

Eleanor Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of hospital admissions there were for adults with malnutrition as a (a) primary and (b) secondary condition in (i) England (ii) each Clinical Commissioning Group and (iii) each parliamentary constituency in each of the last ten years; and if he will make a statement.

Eleanor Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many children were admitted to hospital with malnutrition as a (a) primary and (b) secondary condition in (i) England, (ii) each clinical commissioning group and (iii) each parliamentary constituency in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Churchill: NHS Digital has provided a count of finished admission episodes (FAEs) in each of the last 10 years with a primary or secondary diagnosis of malnutrition for adult and child patients resident in England. This information is provided in the attached tables.Information by clinical commissioning group and parliamentary constituency is too small to be meaningful and has not been provided in order to protect patient confidentiality.Activity for adults in English National Health Service Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector.YearTotal AdmissionsPrimary DiagnosisSecondary DiagnosisAdmissionsPercentageAdmissionsPercentage2008-0911,953,8093480.0029%2,5450.0213%2009-1012,319,7814170.0034%3,1130.0253%2010-1112,629,2294850.0038%3,8430.0304%2011-1212,744,6056080.0048%4,4750.0351%2012-1312,837,8896260.0049%4,5640.0356%2013-1413,159,0785890.0045%5,7070.0434%2014-1513,554,0176830.0050%6,2680.0462%2015-1613,869,1347030.0051%6,6640.0480%2016-1714,078,2697320.0052%7,1320.0507%2017-1814,154,5777350.0052%7,8020.0551% Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), NHS Digital  Activity for children in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector.YearTotal AdmissionsPrimary DiagnosisSecondary DiagnosisAdmissionsPercentageAdmissionsPercentage2008-091,850,531260.0014%1760.0095%2009-101,894,664400.0021%1340.0071%2010-111,928,249430.0022%1800.0093%2011-121,449,122380.0026%1570.0108%2012-131,484,907370.0025%1680.0113%2013-141,964,359250.0013%1850.0094%2014-151,984,768370.0019%1930.0097%2015-162,038,411290.0014%2670.0131%2016-172,043,080470.0023%2430.0119%2017-182,020,591570.0028%2630.0130% Source: HES, NHS DigitalNotes:1. A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period.2. The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the HES data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital.3. ICD-10 codes used to define malnutrition are: E40 Kwashiorkor;E41 Nutritional marasmus E42 Marasmic kwashiorkor;E43 Unspecified severe protein–energy malnutrition;E44 Protein–energy malnutrition of moderate and mild degree;E45 Retarded development following protein–energy malnutrition;E46 Unspecified protein–energy malnutrition; and O25 Malnutrition in pregnancy.5. Adult: the patient was 18 years old or greater at the start of the episode of care.6. Child: the patient was under 18 years old at the start of the episode of care.

Malnutrition

Eleanor Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many patients readmitted to hospital within (a) zero to seven and (b) eight to 180 days were recorded as suffering malnutrition as a primary or secondary condition in each of the last ten years.

Jo Churchill: Information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Magnetic Resonance Imagers

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average age is of MRI machines used by the NHS.

Jo Churchill: The information requested is not held centrally.

Cancer: Nurses

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the number of cancer clinical nurse specialist vacancies in the NHS.

Jo Churchill: NHS Improvement collects vacancy data for three staff groups; doctors, nurses and ‘other staff’. These vacancy statistics are published for England and at the regional level of North, Midlands and East, London and South.NHS Digital published the latest NHS Improvement vacancy data which can be found at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-vacancies-survey/february-2015---march-2019-provisional-experimental-statisticsThe large majority of vacancies are filled by a combination of bank and agency staff.

Cancer: Health Professions

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to tackle cancer workforce shortages in the NHS people plan.

Jo Churchill: The interim NHS People Plan, published on 3 June 2019, puts the workforce at the heart of the National Health Service and will ensure we have the staff needed to deliver high quality care. A final People Plan will be published soon after the conclusion of the 2019 Spending Review.The Cancer Workforce Plan for England, published in December 2017 by Health Education England (HEE), set out plans to expand capacity and skills in the cancer workforce, including targeting additional training support for seven priority professions which are key to cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment, such as clinical radiology, histopathology, oncology and diagnostic and therapeutic radiography. HEE will now work with NHS England and NHS Improvement to understand the longer-term workforce implications of further development of cancer services. This work will inform the final People Plan.

Dental Services: Havering

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his department is taking to  increase the availability of orthodontists in Havering.

Jo Churchill: NHS England is responsible for commissioning National Health Service dental services in England including orthodontic services.NHS England has confirmed that new personal dental services contracts across London will start in October 2019. This will help meet the orthodontic needs of local residents within each borough. NHS dental practices will continue to provide the same NHS services that all children are currently eligible to receive.

Cancer: Health Services

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when a long-term workforce plan which sets out the number of staff required to meet the current and future needs of cancer patients will be published.

Jo Churchill: The interim NHS People Plan, published on 3 June 2019, puts the workforce at the heart of the National Health Service and will ensure we have the staff needed to deliver high quality care. A final People Plan will be published soon after the conclusion of the 2019 Spending Review.Phase 1 of the Cancer Workforce Plan for England, published in December 2017 by Health Education England (HEE), set out plans to expand capacity and skills in the cancer workforce, including targeting additional training support for seven priority professions which are key to cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment, such as clinical radiology, histopathology, oncology and diagnostic and therapeutic radiography.HEE will now work with NHS England and NHS Improvement to understand the longer-term workforce implications of further development of cancer services. This work will inform the final People Plan.

Electronic Cigarettes: Health Hazards

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of the increased numbers of people vaping on (a) nicotine addiction, (b) incidences of increased blood pressure and (c) heart attack rates.

Jo Churchill: Public Health England (PHE) has published a series of reports on electronic cigarettes including the effects of vaping on health. The reports are available to view at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/e-cigarettes-and-vaping-policy-regulation-and-guidanceWhile nicotine can contribute to raised blood pressure and cardiovascular risk, it is tar and carbon monoxide, which are the major sources of cardiovascular risk in cigarette smoke, producing nicotine vapour from a solution rather than by burning tobacco means that electronic cigarette vapour is free from almost all the toxic chemicals that accompany nicotine in cigarette smoke.The Office for National Statistics has recorded the numbers of people using e-cigarettes since 2014 and the combined number of people using e-cigarettes and smoking has not increased since then. The proportion of people who smoke has decreased substantially in the same period.PHE encourages people who both vape and smoke to stop smoking completely, because this greatly reduces health risks.

Electronic Cigarettes

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to ban e-cigarettes wherever the smoking ban is in place. .

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to ban (a) e-cigarette shops and (b) smoking on NHS hospital property.

Jo Churchill: The Government believes in proportionate regulation of e-cigarettes, recognising that they are not risk-free. Through the European Union Tobacco Products Directive 2014/40/EU (TPD), transposed into United Kingdom law by the UK Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 (TRPR), we have introduced measures to regulate e-cigarettes. These measures reduce the risk of harm to children, protect against any risk of renormalisation of tobacco use, provide assurance on relative safety for users, and give businesses legal certainty. This has enabled the UK to implement appropriate standards for products whilst allowing smokers to move to e-cigarettes should they wish. The Government has made a commitment to review the TRPR by May 2021 to consider its regulatory impact. In addition, as announced in the Tobacco Control Plan the Government will review where the UK’s exit from the European Union offers us opportunities to re-appraise current regulation to ensure this continues to protect the nation’s health.The Government has no plans to introduce legislative proposals to ban e-cigarettes, e-cigarette shops or smoking on National Health Service property.We continue to support the implementation of smokefree policies across all hospitals in England. The Government’s tobacco control plan for England published in July 2017 reiterates our ambition to achieve smokefree mental health services and NHS estate by 2019/20. The NHS Long Term Plan, published in January 2019, further supports the creation of a Smokefree NHS with the commitment to offering NHS-funded tobacco treatment services to all patients who smoke.

Pharmacy

Neil O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the number of community pharmacies.

Jo Churchill: The Government is not actively looking to increase the number of community pharmacies in England.Applications to provide National Health Service pharmaceutical services continue to be determined by NHS England and NHS Improvement, informed by the local pharmaceutical needs assessment, which outlines the level of NHS pharmaceutical services provision in a given area, including if there are any gaps or unmet needs.In England, access to NHS pharmaceutical services is good. There are over 11,500 community pharmacies, which is 12% more than a decade ago. This coverage means that 80% of the population live within 20 minutes walking distance of a community pharmacy, with more pharmacies in the most deprived areas.Maintaining access to NHS pharmaceutical services remains an important priority for the Government. We will continue to maintain the good level of access we have in England through the Pharmacy Access Scheme, which provides additional financial support to pharmacies in areas where there are fewer pharmacies.

Measles

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department has published on distinguishing between rashes caused by the measles vaccine and those arising from the wild strain of measles.

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that statistics on the infection rate for measles do not include people who have received the live measles vaccine and contracted a measles-like rash and fever.

Jo Churchill: While post vaccine rash and fever is generally mild, distinguishing from wild-type measles is not based on clinical examination, rather it is based on a combination of laboratory analysis, information on the timing of vaccine and epidemiological information. The national measles guidelines describe the management and investigation of suspected cases of measles, and is available to view at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-measles-guidelinesStatistics on confirmed measles cases are reported by vaccination status and are available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/measles-mumps-and-rubella-lab-confirmed-cases-in-england-2019

MMR Vaccine: Side Effects

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) body inclusion encephalitis and (b) other adverse events experienced after a measles vaccine are identified in a timely way by healthcare professionals.

Jo Churchill: The safety of all the United Kingdom’s vaccination programmes is of paramount importance. Any serious side effects are extremely rare, and the large majority of side effects are mild and transient, such as sore arms, headaches and tiredness. We would recommend that all eligible children are vaccinated, as any potential risk of side effects is far outweighed by the benefits of vaccination.Healthcare professionals have access to a range of materials, such as ‘Immunisation against infectious disease: the green book’ and Patient Group Directions to support their decision-making in the case of any suspected adverse effects.The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) operates the ‘Yellow Card Scheme’, which is vital in helping the MHRA monitor the safety of all healthcare products in the UK. This system allows for reporting of any potential adverse events for all medicines, including vaccines, with guidance for healthcare professionals, patients and the public on how to use the scheme.In addition, Public Health England (PHE) offers diagnostic services for suspected cases of encephalitis, which is a notifiable condition. Under statutory duty, cases must be reported by healthcare professionals to PHE’s local Health Protection Teams. This can be viewed at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/notifications-of-infectious-diseases-noids

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: Climate Change

Chris Law: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans he has to investigate alternative sources of climate finance from (a) public and (b) private sources.

Andrew Stephenson: Delivering the global transition to a low carbon economy will require unprecedented levels of investment from the public and private sectors. The Government is fulfilling our pledge to deliver £5.8 billion between 2015/2016 and 20/21. In addition to investing our own resources, the Government continues to press multilateral organisations to help countries tackle climate change through providing finance. The Multilateral Development Banks have an important role to play, and in the last year the World Bank has set new targets for the proportion of its finance which contributes to low carbon, resilient development. In 2018, 70% of World Bank projects include some climate benefits, up from 37% just two years ago.Private finance is crucial, and the Government uses some of its climate finance to unlock investments from the private sector. To date, we estimate that the UK has leveraged £910 million of private investment. CDC and the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) have a key role in crowding in other investors and demonstrating that investment in low carbon, resilient development is possible. CDC has invested over $500 million in renewable power over the last 2 years, and PIDG $300 million.The recently published UK Green Finance Strategy outlines how we will position the UK at the forefront of this global shift, catalysing the investment needed to transition to a net zero economy.

Developing Countries: Education

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made of the merits of a Global Plan of Action for Education as called for by UNESCO in its report of July 2019 entitled meeting commitments: are countries on track to achieve SDG 4; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stephenson: The recommendations in UNESCO’s report of July 2019: Meeting commitments: are countries on track to achieve SDG 4 align well with DFID’s education policy: Get Children Learning and the work the UK is supporting in such areas as learning measurement, education financing, research and policy dialogue. We welcome UNESCO’s report and look forward to hearing more about suggestions for a Global Plan of Action for Education.

Department for International Development: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2019 to Question 271330, for what reasons his Department does not offer a payroll deduction service to enable employees to join a credit union; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Stephenson: DFID will assess the potential merits of enabling departmental staff to contribute to a credit union through payroll if at any time we receive a request from our employees to provide such a facility. DFID can find no record of a request being made.

Developing Countries: Loans

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what proportion of UK aid to developing countries goes towards loan repayments.

Andrew Stephenson: The Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI) provides full relief on eligible debt owed by countries which have reached Completion Point of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative, to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank, and the African Development Fund (AfDF) of the African Development Bank. The UK contributed £107 million to the MDRI in 2017 and this is all official development assistance (ODA). When necessary, the UK also provides relief on loans made bilaterally by the Export Credit Guarantee Department (ECGD) to developing countries, through the coordinated process of the Paris Club of creditors. In 2017 the UK provided £3 million of ODA as such debt relief on ECGD loans. Therefore in 2017 the total UK debt relief, through the MDRI and bilaterally, represented 0.78% of total UK ODA in 2017.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Ebola

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of the spread of Ebola to the city of Goma and the potential risk of the outbreak spreading to Rwanda.

Andrew Stephenson: The spread of Ebola to Goma is deeply concerning. Goma’s position on the border increases the chance of Ebola spreading to Rwanda. The UK is a leading donor to the Ebola response in DRC and has played a pivotal role in helping neighbouring countries like Rwanda prepare. On 15 July, DFID announced that the UK would provide up to a further £50 million to the response to December 2019. UK Aid is supporting a range of activities, including the construction of screening facilities at border crossings and the vaccination of health workers in DRC and the region.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Ebola

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to overcome the (a) local mistrust of health officials and (b) militia violence which have impeded efforts to prevent the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo from spreading further.

Andrew Stephenson: The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is the second largest in history and the first in a conflict zone. The UK has been a major supporter of the response since the start, providing funding, technical expertise, and political support. The response has been hampered by repeated attacks against health workers and health facilities. Improving community trust and ownership are essential to getting the outbreak under control. UK funding supports community engagement and working with local leaders and religious groups to foster trust and ownership. It supports efforts to understand community concerns better and feed this understanding back into the response. Examples include employing people who have recovered from Ebola to talk to communities about the health care they received as a way to build community trust in health workers. The UK and other donors are also supporting the UN to strengthen security in Ebola affected areas to protect both communities and response workers.

Yemen: International Assistance

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the processing time for humanitarian supplies imported through the port of Aden in Yemen.

Andrew Stephenson: The UK tracks Yemen’s imports and ports to monitor trends and predict pressure points in humanitarian supplies. We work with the private sector, non-governmental organisations and United Nations agencies to improve our understanding of how Aden Port functions and to advise the United Arab Emirates who are leading international efforts to improve Aden Port. The UK regularly raises humanitarian concerns with both parties to the conflict, calling on them to comply with UN Security Council Resolution 2451 and facilitate safe, rapid, and unhindered access for humanitarian and commercial supplies, including through Aden Port.

Bangladesh: Rohingya

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made of the decision to move Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh to the island of Bhasan Charan, which is at risk of severe flooding and cyclones.

Andrew Stephenson: We have made clear to the Government of Bangladesh that any relocation of refugees must be safe, dignified and meet international humanitarian principles and standards. The UK fully supports the UN’s position that full and detailed technical and protection assessments should be conducted of Bhasan Char before any relocations of Rohingya are considered. We welcome the Government of Bangladesh’s commitment to ensure any relocations are voluntary and are conducted in coordination with UN agencies.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Ebola

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what further steps his Department is taking to stop the spread of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since the World Health Organization declared the crisis a public health emergency of international concern.

Andrew Stephenson: The UK has been one of the major supporters of the response to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since it began in August 2018. This has included providing significant funding and technical expertise. Two days before the declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), on 15 July, DFID announced additional financial and technical support of up to £50 million – recognising the seriousness of the situation in DRC and the high risk of regional spread. Following the PHEIC declaration, the UK has echoed the WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in encouraging countries, companies and individuals to avoid measures that could undermine the response and further fuel insecurity, notably the closure of borders.

Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission

Electoral Register: Young People

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what assessment the Electoral Commission has made of the potential merits of auto-enrolment on the electoral register of young people when they are given their national insurance number.

Bridget Phillipson: The Commission believes that registering young people automatically when they are allocated their National Insurance number would be an effective way of improving completeness levels among attainers.It recently published the findings of feasibility studies examining the potential for data sharing between organisations holding reliable information about citizens and Electoral Registration Officers. It found that data sharing could be achieved by linking national data sources to the individual electoral registration service, which is already connected to the systems used by Electoral Registration Officers to manage their electoral registers.In this way, it would be possible for information about young people allocated National Insurance numbers to be shared with Electoral Registration Officers, to support automatic or automated electoral registration.

Electoral Registration Officers: Standards

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, if he will make an assessment of the ability of the Electoral Commission to monitor the performance of electoral registration officers in dealing with electors who (a) have low reading and writing skills, (b) are visually impaired and (c) have learning difficulties.

Bridget Phillipson: The Electoral Commission sets standards for and monitors the performance of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs). These standards have the objective of ensuring that all eligible people are able to participate in the electoral process.The Commission provides guidance to EROs to support them in delivering their functions and meeting the performance standards. In developing this guidance to improve the accessibility of electoral registration services, the Commission works with a variety of disability organisations – including groups representing electors with sight loss and learning difficulties – to ensure its work reflects good practice.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what steps have been taken by the Electoral Commission to inform hon. Members of the performance of electoral registration officers in their (a) constituency and (b) local authority.

Bridget Phillipson: The Electoral Commission’s performance standards framework has not involved any formal notifications to Members of Parliament since 2014. Assessments of the performance of EROs are made annually by the Commission and the details of any ERO who has not met the standards in full are made available on the Commission’s website.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, which electoral registration officers identified themselves as below standard at using information services to (a) verify entries in the register of electors and (b) identify potential new electors in the latest period for which figures are available.

Bridget Phillipson: The Electoral Commission’s performance standards framework has not involved any element of self-assessment by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) since 2014.The Commission has not assessed any ERO as not meeting this specific element of the performance standards since its inclusion in 2016.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, how many letters the Electoral Commission has written to hon. Members as a result of their electoral registration officers having failed at least one standard performance indicator in each year for which data is available.

Bridget Phillipson: The Electoral Commission’s performance standards framework has not included any formal notifications to Members of Parliament since 2014. Assessments of the performance of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are made annually by the Commission and the details of any ERO who has not met the standards in full are made available on the Commission’s website.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, with reference to the Answer of 5 July 2011 to Question 63427 on Electoral Register, which electoral registration officers rated themselves too highly in their self-assessment and had their ratings reduced in each year since 2014.

Bridget Phillipson: The Electoral Commission’s performance standards framework has not involved any element of self-assessment by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) since 2014.Assessments of the performance of EROs are made annually by the Commission and the details of any ERO who has not met the standards in full are made available on the Commission’s website.

Electoral Register: Ethnic Groups

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what recent discussions the Commission has had with (a) church and community leaders from black and minority ethnic communities and (b) Operation Black Vote on increasing registration levels for voters in those communities.

Bridget Phillipson: We know from our research of the electoral registers that voters from BME communities are less likely to be registered to vote when compared with white voters.As part of all of its public awareness campaigns ahead of elections, the Electoral Commission provides voter registration resources to a wide range of groups or individuals, to use in encouraging registration. These are freely available via the Commission’s website or its ‘Roll Call’ newsletter, to which anyone can subscribe.We also identify specific organisations who could help promote registration to under-registered groups and actively provide these partners with resources: these have recently included, for example, the Council of African and Caribbean Churches and the Muslim Women’s network. It also works closely with Electoral Registration Officers, who hold many important relationships with church and community leaders to promote voter registration at a local level.The Commission most recently contacted Operation Black Vote ahead of the Government’s voter ID pilots which took place in May 2019, to seek a contribution to its statutory evaluation of the pilots. It did not receive a response.

Electoral Register: Students

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, with reference to the Answer of 23 April 2012, Official Report, column 623W on Electoral Register, what steps he has taken to improve student registration.

Bridget Phillipson: We know from our research of the electoral registers that students and young people are less likely to be registered to vote.As part of its public awareness campaigns ahead of elections, the Commission seeks to target under-registered groups wherever this is possible. This includes placing advertising on platforms like Snapchat and Instagram, and buying TV advertising space during times when people aged 16 to 34 make up a larger proportion of the audience.The Commission also provides voter registration resources to a wide range of groups or individuals, to use in encouraging registration. These are freely available via the Commission’s website or its ‘Roll Call’ newsletter, to which anyone can subscribe. Ahead of the elections in May 2019, it developed a number of resources in partnership with the National Union of Students, including social media images, posters and a resource pack for individual student unions.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, which local authority had the biggest percentage (a) increase and (b) decrease in electoral registration in each year since 2010.

Bridget Phillipson: The table below sets out the largest increases and decreases in the registered local government electorate, by local authority, from 1 December of one year to 1 December of the following year. For example, the 2010 row shows the change in the number of register entries between 1 December 2009 and 1 December 2010.YearLargest % increaseLargest % decrease2010Shepway (8.9%)Richmondshire (-7.2%)2011Aberdeen (4.9%)Clackmannanshire (-4.6%)2012Clackmannanshire (4.3%)Tower Hamlets (-6%)2013Tower Hamlets (11.3%)Taunton Deane (-8.8%)2014Wellingborough (6.5%)Ceredigion (-12.7%)2015East Devon (5.2%)Cambridge (-11.8%)2016Colchester (9%)Manchester (-3.8%)2017Tower Hamlets (12%)Hyndburn (-6%)2018Barking & Dagenham (4.5%)Isles of Scilly (-7.1%)

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the ranked order of spending per person on electoral registration by local authorities was in the last year for which figures are available.

Bridget Phillipson: The Commission does not collect data on the spending per person on electoral registration by local authorities.

Electoral Register: Young People

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what recent assessment the Electoral Commission has made of electoral registration rates of attainers in (a) Scotland, (b) Northern Ireland, (c) Wales and (d) England.

Bridget Phillipson: The Electoral Commission conducts research into the accuracy and completeness of the electoral registers in the UK at regular intervals. The most recent study was published in 2016 and was an assessment of the December 2015 registers.The study provided findings on attainers for Great Britain and separately for Northern Ireland. Below the headline findings, it was not possible to report separately for England, Scotland and Wales because of the size of the sample used in the research.In December 2015, the Commission found that 45% of attainers in Great Britain and 8% in Northern Ireland were correctly registered.The results of the Commission’s next accuracy and completeness study will be published in autumn 2019.

Election Offences: Prosecutions

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for Houghton and Sunderland South, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, how many successful prosecutions for (a) postal vote fraud, excluding by proxy voting, and (b) electoral registration fraud there have been in each of the last 15 years.

Bridget Phillipson: The Commission has collected and published information about allegations of electoral fraud from the police since 2008.The table below shows the number of successful prosecutions for allegations of postal vote and electoral registration fraud. It splits convictions for postal vote fraud into those relating to applications to vote by post and those relating to voting by post.Number of successful prosecutions relating to postal vote fraudYearConvictions relating to applications to vote by postConvictions relating to voting by postConvictions relating to electoral registration2018000201700020160012015001201400020130002012000201100220101002009n/an/a22008n/an/a0The police-recorded cases of alleged personation offences in 2008 and 2009 were not broken down to record the type of personation, i.e. polling station, postal voting or proxy voting. It is for this reason these figures are not available.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Social Rented Housing: Standards

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to recent English Housing Survey statistics which show that four per cent of local authority housing and 13 per cent of social housing fail to meet the Decent Homes Standard, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of restoring central Government funding for housing providers to enable the remaining non-decent homes to be improved.

Esther McVey: The Decent Homes Standard has driven improvements to the quality of social housing. Between 2011 and 2016 Government provided a total of £1.76 billion to 45 councils across England to tackle the backlog of non-decent homes, making over 158,000 homes decent.Local Authority Housing Statistics show that the proportion of non-decent local authority dwellings was 4 per cent 1 April 2018. The English Housing Survey shows that, in 2017, 13 per cent of social rented homes overall (516,000) were considered non-decent, down from 20 per cent (759,000) in 2010. This is lower than the proportion of private rented (25 per cent) and owner occupied (19 per cent) homes.The Social Housing Green Paper asks if there are any changes to what constitutes a decent home that we should consider, and whether we need additional measures to make sure homes are safe and decent. We are currently considering the responses to the consultation.

Housing: Standards

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) incentivising or requiring housebuilders to monitor and collect data on the performance of homes post-occupancy and (b) requiring housebuilders to publish that information.

Esther McVey: The Government is taking action to raise the quality of new build homes. We are reforming the building safety system, reviewing the Approved Documents to the Building Regulations including the conservation of fuel and power, and working with industry to improve productivity and skills, all of which will raise building performance and standards. We are also currently consulting on the design and delivery of a New Homes Ombudsman, including their role in driving up the quality of new build homes.

Planning Permission

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to ensure that planning permission is time limited to prevent completions being built to superceded building regulations.

Esther McVey: Generally, when a planning permission is granted, the development must commence within three years. The intention behind this time limit is to prevent the accumulation of planning permissions which are unimplemented. It also allows councils to review the development’s suitability in the light of circumstances which may have altered over the three year periodWhen new Building Regulations are introduced, time limited transitional provisions are normally included. Transitional provisions are kept under review for changes to Building Regulations.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Agriculture: Subsidies

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many pilot environmental land management schemes have been agreed, where those pilots will take place; and what the start date is for each such pilot.

George Eustice: Tests and trials allow us to co-design and test the operability of elements of the new system and to understand if and how new elements of the Environmental Land Management (ELM) scheme work in a real life environment. Tests and trials are not analysing methods of delivery of environmental outcomes rather how the scheme or innovative mechanism will operate. We received 113 proposals from stakeholders to conduct tests and trials of the new ELM scheme in phase one. We identified 49 of these which most closely matched the identified priorities and would help us test critical elements or building blocks of the new scheme. Of these 49, two have subsequently merged with other phase 1 proposals and one has withdrawn from the process, leaving 46. The national pilot is due to start in 2021. It will test different types of possible approaches to deliver the new ELM scheme, and the underlying scheme mechanics (such as the payments system) before the ELM scheme launches in 2024.

Home Office

Premier Inn: Fires

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department plans to make an assessment of whether combustible materials in the roof contributed to the spread of the fire at the Premier Inn near Cribbs Causeway on 18 July 2019.

Kit Malthouse: Avon FRS has confirmed that it will be conducting an investigation into the fire.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Electronic Commerce: Regulation

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what his policy is on the regulation of third-party sellers on online marketplaces; and whether he plans to include those sellers in the forthcoming online harms legislation.

Matt Warman: Consumer protections already apply to online traders operating directly or as a third party through a platform.The Online Harms White Paper sets out the Government's plan to establish a statutory duty of care to make companies take more responsibility for the safety of their users and tackle harm caused by content or activity on their services. We have consulted on our proposals for the new duty of care to apply to companies and other bodies that allow users to share or discover user-generated content or interact with each other online.Companies in scope of the regulatory framework will be held to account for tackling a broad range of harmful and illegal content or activity on their services. However, where there is already an effective regulatory framework, this will be excluded from scope to avoid duplication.The Online Harms White Paper consultation closed on 1 July. The Government will publish its response later this year.